If you failed the bar exam, do not let this set-back deliver a blow to your self-esteem. Most people I know who failed the bar exam are far from slackers-they put in as much time as the next guy. Moreover, the people who failed the bar are just as intelligent as anyone who passed. In fact, anyone who has the intelligence to get through law school can pass the bar exam.

The difference between passers and retakers is generally not a difference in hard work or intelligence. Although it may sound a bit pollyanna, my experience in the bar prep field shows that retakers really need a healthy dose of confidence and an attitude adjustment-what those in sports training like to call the mental edge.

Face it, the law school experience can really leave people feeling bad about themselves. For example, I worked with a woman, I will call her Morgan, who had failed the bar exam. After chatting with her a bit, I realized that she was a bright and hard-working student whose attitude had damned her on the exam. Prior to taking the bar, she had reasoned that, if 40% of test takers would fail the bar, then she surely belonged in that failing group since she was a below average student in a law school with a mediocre ranking. Even more, the poisonous atmosphere of law school itself had left her feeling terrible about herself. She had always somehow felt less prepared than her fellow students and nervous about talking in front of her peers. She felt thrown off by the competitive mind games and the bravado displayed by some students.

If you failed the bar exam, you might also have some of this psychological baggage. Trying to study and really learn with this type of baggage is like driving with your parking brakes on; progress is stilted and the ride is bumpy!

While it is beyond the scope of this article to delve too deeply into psychology, there are some simple steps you can take to shake off some of the psychological hang-ups and improve your focus and concentration.

First of all, change and improve your environment. If law school was a nightmare for you, find a different place to study. Discover new spots on campus or in town and create some new, positive associations. Stay away from people who bring you down. (I remember a loudmouth guy at my law school talking about how he had the MBE down and could now move into the state materials. This was two weeks into studying. You really do not need to hear this kind of thing.) Study alone or find some focused, calm students. Be a hermit if you want-it is just for a few months and it is really easy to fly solo with bar exam study. Law school was about sharing notes and case briefs and outlines; this is different, since even a basic bar review course gives you most of the materials you need.

Setting and meeting your own short-term study goals is another great way to build both confidence and momentum. Every day of studying, you should have a goal of learning something concrete. Perhaps it is reviewing a few outlines and memorizing the major headings. Perhaps it is answering a set of sample questions, carefully reviewing your mistakes, and making flashcards to remember what you have learned. Set smart goals and stick to them like glue; focus intently on your personal study goals and shut-out anything that brings you down. As you find yourself making and keeping these daily commitments, you will find your self-confidence soaring.

Finally, view this taking of the bar exam as a fresh start. It does not matter what your grades were in law school and where you went to school; as each year passes, you law school experience will become increasingly irrelevant. It does not matter that this is your second (or third. Whatever.)go around on the bar. What matters is that you put the bar exam behind you so you will be armed with a JD and a license to practice law. Do you know what they call someone who graduated at the bottom of the class? A lawyer. Do you know what they call someone who graduated from Just Accredited Law School? A lawyer. Put whatever is holding you back from the past in the past and move on.

One of the recurring themes of my bar review articles is that law school study is completely different than bar review. If you are having trouble on the bar exam, it may be that you are stuck using law school study tactics.

One of the main components of preparing for a law school exam is what I call the collection phase. This is when you collect your notes, notes from days you missed, case briefs, and, of course, engage in the mad hunt for the golden outlines from years past. Then, you put everything together in a cohesive outline. Sadly, your law school exam grade is at least partially dependent on how well you can hunt and gather these resources.

Bar exam review for the Multistate Bar Exam could not be more different. Really. You should not waste precious time in the collection phase. There are only three types of resources that you need.

First, you need an outline for each subject. The outline is for reference only. No one passes the bar exam by reading over outlines. If you have your old law school outlines and perhaps Emanuels, that is probably all you need. Just make sure all the bar exam subjects are covered. If your outlines are not perfect, then you can use the internet to supplement. Pull up the relevant statute or section of a restatement and add it to your outline. These outlines are just there for reference. No need to spend too much time here.

Second, you need materials that will help you familiarize yourself with the material. You cannot jump into the hard questions until you have a comfortable working familiarity with the materials. The best study tools for this phase of study are flashcards, either your own or commercially prepared ones. I also recommend my book, MBE Crossword Bar Exam Review. You can also just take your outline, read over a page, and close your eyes and ask yourself questions. Anything that pulls you into the material a bit. Just do not waste time passively reading over the outlines. Remember, at this phase, you are not trying to totally understand the material. This is the handshake, getting to know your materials phase. Don’t waste time making picture perfect flashcards or software programs.

Third, you must do hard questions that resemble the real test questions and read over the explanatory answers. This is the easiest and most direct way to pass. Spend your time and money on this part of studying. If you are having trouble with these questions, it is most likely because of some psychological barrier. Spend more time in the second phase and get more comfortable with the material. Go back and forth between hard questions and becoming familiar with the material but realize that the real learning that leads to passing the bar exam takes place in this third phase of study.

Your study time is precious. Use it wisely. I passed two bar exams while working full-time using these strategies. I did not take a bar review course; I just used a thick book of sample questions and my old outlines. I did not have time to sit with my friends and flip through outlines; I sat on the Metro in DC and did sample questions, even if it was only a dozen a day. Because my time was limited, I generated the most no-nonsense, to the point study strategy possible.